Turkish F-16 crashes after pilot ejects safely

ANKARA: An F-16 fighter jet crashed during a training exercise in northwestern Turkey on Wednesday, but no one was hurt, the pilot ejecting to safety, the defense ministry said.

"An F-16 aircraft belonging to our air force was involved in an accident during a training flight in Yalova, and our pilot survived by ejecting," a statement said, pledging a thorough investigation.

Yalova lies southeast of Istanbul on the shores of the Sea of Marmara.

CCTV footage broadcast by IHA news agency showed a plane hurtling through the air at a very low altitude before disappearing behind some trees, sending up a cloud of thick black smoke as it crashed.

According to the private NTV channel, the plane crashed near an air base, with several teams of rescuers dispatched to the scene. It said the pilot had been taken to hospital.

Six months ago, another Turkish F-16 fighter jet crashed, killing the pilot, shortly after takeoff during an alert-response mission near the Bulgarian border.

In November, Turkey suspended flights by its C-130 cargo planes after one crashed in Georgia while returning from Azerbaijan, killing all 20 on board.